Hyperspectral funduscopy for non-invasive detection of retinal ischemia

Project Aim

Retinal Ischemia is a leading cause of vision impairment and blindness among adults. While there are number of treatments methods that interrupt the ischemic cascade, there are no clinically effective methods for reversing retinal ischemia. Thus, effective treatment requires early detection of the disease.

The aim of this project was to use hyperspectral fundus imaging for non-invasive identification of retinal ischemia. Hyperspectral imaging (HSI) uses narrow band optical wavelengths to obtain the detailed spectrum of the image at each of the pixels. This is a relatively new technology and allows the user to record the true colours of each pixel in a range that is often defined in terms of the wavelength of the light. It was hypothesized that differences between normal and ischemic regions in retina will be observable using hyperspectral imaging which can be used as an alternative technique to the invasive fluorescein angiography (FA).

Project Results and Summary

As a result of this study, a prototype hyperspectral fundus camera was built and the baseline characteristics and feature sets (i.e. texture and oxygenation level) were identified corresponding to retinal perfusion and to identify non-perfused regions.

This work has determined that hyperspectral imaging has the potential for improved assessment of the retinal vasculature disorders. Further development and experiments are essential to test and validate the hypothesis.

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